Frustrated Wishes
by kalim007
Summary: Amberfeather and Winddancer find each other very interesting, but things keep interrupting their alone time!  See what happens to two scouts as they try to get to know each other.  Sequel to Amberfeather's Bad Day  Read and review!
1. A Chance Encounter

Welcome to the new story about Amberfeather and Winddancer! If you had wished them to get together in my last story (Amberfeather's Bad Day, to which this story is a sequel, and starts immediately where it leaves off), then you've come to the right place!

As always, quick warning: Mercedes Lackey owns Valdemar, Tayledras, and all the rest. Since I am not Mercedes Lackey, this means I do not own them. I am not pretending to be her. Thank you.

Hope you enjoy, and please review so I know how it's going!

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Amberfeather left the pond and returned to his _ekele _feeling much happier than he had felt when he entered the pond. Somehow, hearing about other's problems made him feel happier. He wondered idly, as he pulled off the wet robe he was wearing and exchanged it for a sleeping robe, if that was a sign of a mentally disturbed person. With a mental shrug, he gave up the thought, knowing that if he _was _mentally disturbed, he would not likely agree with himself that he was, so he didn't need to waste time on worrying about it.

The next day dawned bright and clear, which Amberfeather discovered as soon as he left the Vale after eating a quick breakfast. _What a great day_!he exulted to himself.

His good mood lasted only until he got as far as about 3 steps outside of the Vale. He promptly tripped over a branch and fell down. _Not again_, he thought feeling a trifle panicked. As good a mood as he was in after hearing the other's stories of pain and suffering, he knew that if he had to spend the rest of his life with his terrible luck, that good mood would quickly become just a memory.

"Good morning, Amberfeather!" called Winddancer cheerfully.

Amberfeather started, from his position on the ground. _Why does she appear every time I do something stupid? _

"Hey, Winddancer," he called, a lot less cheerfully. "What are you up to?"

"I am just heading out on patrol. I saw you sitting there and I was wondering what _you _were up to." Her voice was still really cheerful. Amberfeather wondered if she was always so perky when he was feeling stupid. It was a bad combination. It just made him annoyed.

He had a sudden thought, though, that made him feel slightly more cheerful._ Maybe I'm clumsy when she's around _because _she's around, _he thought. _That would explain a lot. After all, I do find her quite attractive. I wouldn't mind exchanging feathers with her…_

Realizing that Winddancer was staring at him, still waiting for a response, he quickly put his head down and pretended to stare at something on the ground.

"What are you looking at?" Winddancer asked, sounding curious. She walked closer, and tried to find what he was looking at. She glanced at his face and tried to gauge where to look.

Amberfeather pretended to be so caught up in staring at the ground. He started to answer, but let his voice trail off distractedly. "I am looking at this here…"

Winddancer sighed in an annoyed way, then marched all the way over to where Amberfeather was sitting and plopped down next to him. She glanced sideways at his face, and then down at the area where he was staring. She wasn't sure what he saw, but she saw nothing. She gave up looking, then decided to stare at him for awhile. _He might get nervous and finally explain if I stare at him, _Winddancer thought, _and even if he doesn't, I get to look at him for a while! _She grinned inwardly at the thought of being allowed to examine his face, which she had found herself wanting to do the night before, with no consequences.

Amberfeather quickly noticed that while staring at the ground had gotten him what he had wanted (Winddancer to come closer), it was now backfiring as the girl tired of staring at the ground and moved on to staring him down. This made him feel decidedly uncomfortable, but he didn't to lose in some sort of staring contest. After all, he was a man!

Amberfeather decided he didn't care if he lost the staring contest, as long as she stopped staring at him. He debated how to end this strange situation he had gotten himself into, and finally decided to do something impetuous.

"Do you see it?" Amberfeather asked her.

"See what?" she asked, transferring her gaze back to the ground. As soon as she did so, he said, "This!" and pounced on her, pinning her to the ground and laughing at the stunned look on her face.

"I pinned you! I am the strongest!" he laughed at her. Winddancer laughed with him, relaxing, since she had tensed up when he had pounced.

"Of course, you do realize that wasn't a very fair fight, right?" she asked him, calmly. She didn't want him to suspect what she was planning. He was holding her shoulders loosely to the ground, and not really paying much attention to her little movements.

"It was _very _fair," he protested hotly. "I used the element of surprise, which is a very fair and time-honored battle tactic."

"You didn't tell me we _were _having some sort of battle, though, Amberfeather. I believe that might have caused your strategy to fail," she said, reasonably.

"Ahh, but that's precisely why I didn't warn you," he responded. "I didn't want my manly honor to be in jeopardy if I lost."

She laughed at him, and then prepared to show him he had not won quite as easily as he had thought. With a quick twist, she flipped him over and plopped herself down on his chest.

"Now, see, you had every chance to see what I was planning to do before I did it," she told him as he spluttered underneath her. "You were holding my shoulders, so you could feel how I tensed up, getting ready for the counterattack, and you could see in my eyes that I was not yet finished fighting!"

"But I didn't think I'd be overwhelmed with so little effort," he told her. "There goes my manly reputation. At least it wasn't that impressive to begin with."

The both laughed again, then they realized how exactly they were situated. The both froze, and looked at each other in the face, trying to see how the other was feeling.

_I can't believe the girl I was just considering exchanging feathers with is sitting on my chest, holding me down, _thought Amberfeather. _I admit I had _some _thoughts of this situation, but we were not in the middle of the forest during the day, and we were _definitely _not wearing this many clothes…_

Winddancer was having similar thoughts, but hers were of a much more embarrassed type. _What on earth was I thinking? Now how is he going to take me seriously, and see I want to start a relationship with him if I am trying to best him in wrestling? He's going to think I'm one of the guys, and treat me that way! _

They were unsure of what to do next, and stayed there frozen for long seconds. Amberfeather decided to risk seeing if Winddancer was amiable to a more intimate embrace. He reached up and pulled her down on top of him, arranging her quickly so she was stretched out the entire length of his body, with himself serving as a barrier to the hard ground. He reached both hands up to her head and brought her face towards his, making a move toward kissing her...

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Well, here you go! If you haven't read the first story about Amberfeather and Winddancer, please look it up so you'll have how this story began. Please read and review so I know that the story is proceeding nicely, and what you'd like to see happen, etc. Thanks for reading! 


	2. Frustrated Longings

Amberfeather paused just before kissing her. He wanted to make sure he gave her the chance to stop him, because he prided himself on being a gentleman. When nothing came from her except mute encouragement, he closed his eyes and moved his neck the rest of the way toward her, expecting their lips to touch, completing their first kiss.

The next second, he went flying through the air, landing with a painful thud against a nearby tree. The breath was knocked out of him, so he just lay still for a moment, winded, and trying to figure out what just happened. He kept his body as tense as possible, just in case he would have to suddenly spring into action, but his body really wasn't cooperating too well.

_:What are you foolish humans doing?: _asked a mental voice tinged with amusement, clearly at the insanity of humans.

"You great, big, filthy beast!" shouted Winddancer, springing to her feet and moving to swat playfully at the _dyheli_ that was standing over them. It had been he who had so helpfully separated them, with a carefully aimed, and yet surprisingly gentle, kick to Amberfeather's back.

"Why did you do that?" demanded Winddancer. "You could not have thought us a threat to the herd, way out here, far from where all of the rest of the _dyheli _are… the non-nosy, ones, anyway."

Amberfeather was embarrassed. Winddancer obviously knew the _dyheli, _and was apparently friends with him,but he didn't recognize him. This was not too surprising, as he himself had only one friend among the _dyheli _herds, and there were many more that he simply didn't know.

The embarrassing part was being caught with her in a… slightly compromising position. Of course, not as comprising as it could have been if things went well and the _dyheli _had come a little later… and certainly not as compromising as he wished it had been.

_:Aren't you going to introduce me to your… friend?: _asked the _dyheli_.

"No, I'm not," answered Winddancer. "You don't deserve to know him, after kicking him in the back like that." They both looked over at Amberfeather, who still remained on the ground. He had gotten his wind back by now; he just hadn't convinced himself he had to get up yet. He was still embarrassed to be caught in the woods like he had been, and wasn't sure how to deal with the embarrassment. Sitting on the ground and hoping nobody noticed him seemed like a good idea at the time.

It was a terrible idea. He was now even _more _embarrassed, if that was even possible.

"Amberfeather? Are you okay?" asked Winddancer, with a concerned tone in her voice.

_:I didn't hurt him. It was just a tap: _the _dyheli _insisted.

Amberfeather thought he should speak up before they started arguing about it.

"I'm fine, Winddancer, really. I was a little winded, and a little startled, but since it looked like you two were going to stand and shout at each other all day, I thought I might as well make myself comfortable." _There_, Amberfeather thought, _that is a good reason to still be sitting down. Stupid, but at least _I _don't look stupid. Or as stupid._

Winddancer gave him a doubtful look, but accepted his answer. She offered him her hand to help him up, and he accepted it and stood. He dusted off his rear, and winced as he stretched. Whatever the _dyheli _said, that "tap" had hurt.

"Well, I guess I have to introduce you, so you can know who kicked you, at least," said Winddancer, grouchily. "This is Nyhan, and he's the 2nd most important male in the herd. Apparently, this gives him to right to kick unsuspecting humans whenever he feels like it."

Amberfeather nodded his head toward Nyhan in acknowledgement of the introduction, while thinking, _Winddancer really is grouchy now… no more fun is going to happen today. Oh, well._ Then another thought occurred to him. Perhaps she was so peeved because they were interrupted at a time when she didn't _want _to be interrupted? This was a cheering thought, and Amberfeather grinned.

"Nothing harmed, friend," he said to Nyhan. "I will survive." Nyhan thanked him graciously.

At this, Winddancer stomped off, tossing back, "Well, I have my rounds to make, since you two are such good friends now, you obviously don't need me."

As she disappeared from view, Amberfeather and Nyhan exchanged glances.

_:I don't believe I have ever seen her so angry: _he commented.

"Me, either," agreed Amberfeather.

_:Well, at least that's a good sign for your courtship.: _At this, Amberfeather gave him a surprised look, so he continued. _:Think you I don't know why you two were on the ground? I know humans better than most of my kind. I was glad once I realized it was Winddancer. She's a good friend of mine. Still: _he paused, and an amused tone entered his mind-speech, _:I had to give her a hard time. She's done the same to me, many times, though she seems to have forgotten that._

Amberfeather was embarrassed again, but the way the _dyheli _was talking was so matter-of-fact he couldn't be too embarrassed. He decided to ask Nyhan for advice.

"How do you think I should approach her again? We had a good chance this morning, but I didn't plan it." He tried not to sound desperate, even though he was feeling a bit pathetic and sad.

:Oh, young sir, I can't tell you how to pursue your female! That would lower the worth of her once you catch her. You would always wonder if you could have done it yourself.

With one final pitying glance, Nyhan left.

Amberfeather blinked at the suddenness of his departure.

_Great, _he thought, _now I look like a loser again._

He started to walk, headed on his own rounds. He began to plot how he was going to see Winddancer again, but nothing seemed like the perfect thing to do. He finally decided that he would send her a note upon returning to the Vale, and ask her to share dinner with him.

_Perfect_, he said, and happily called to his bird.

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Well, Chapter 2 leaves Amberfeather in a much better mood... but he shouldn't really be feeling happy quite yet...

Review, please, so I can tell someone is reading it and enjoying it!


	3. How to Deliver a Note

_Not so perfect, _Amberfeather thought later that same day. He had gone home after his scout duty, intending to write a note immediately and then see if he could convince a messenger of some sort send it.

He did _not _want to get the _hertasi _involved, however.

He knew one of them would be the perfect messenger, as they enjoyed getting involved in the lives of the Hawkbrothers anyway. They were also subtle. Quiet. Even sneaky.

But he was already embarrassed after one non-human had gotten involved in his would-be affair of the heart. It was embarrassing even to think about how Nyhan had discovered them this morning, let alone remember that it actually had happened.

Adding in the ever-helpful, ever-_nosy hertasi_ did not sound like a good idea. He knew they could and would make his courtship go more smoothly. But he wanted to do this himself. He had decided that Nyhan was right, and that he should be the one to figure all this out by himself, and he knew if the _hertasi _got involved, he would be lucky to ever make any decisions about Winddancer.

So now he had the perfect note, one he had struggled over to send the exact message he wanted, with a tiny, tiny touch of flirting, but mostly offering friendship and companionship for now, hoping for a chance to later exchange feathers, without scaring her off.

But he had no way to get the note to her.

_So now what? What on earth can I do? I didn't want to ask her directly to dine with me this evening, but I guess I might have to._ Amberfeather continued to mull things over in his mind. He thought of several ways to get the note to her, but rejected all of them immediately as ridiculous.

"By the time I finally send her a note to have dinner with me, she'll have already eaten and gone to bed!" Amberfeather said, out loud, in a increasingly frustrated voice.

Hyyeh flew over and landed on Amberfeather's shoulder to see what was the matter. Amberfeather was a strange one, but he didn't normally talk to himself, and the bird was curious.

Amberfeather answered the curious mental questions sent by his bondbird with a sigh. He quickly explained what the matter was, and why he was embarrassed to use the normal methods. Hyyeh offered to fly the message over to Winddancer.

"Oh, would you really?" Amberfeather asked, delightedly. Upon Hyyeh's confirmation of his willingness to play messenger, he quickly got the note ready to go and gave it to the bird, who left with it in the direction of Winddancer's _ekele_.

Amberfeather grinned with delight. He was going to have company tonight! Then a sudden thought occurred to him… what if she said no? He had never considered that! He was still embarrassed by the afternoon's events, so couldn't she also be embarrassed? And wouldn't it make sense for her to want to avoid Amberfeather to make it easier to forget about the whole mess?

Amberfeather suddenly felt sick. What if she _did _say no? He just sat there for many long minutes, imagining the note she would send back to him, making up a sad excuse for not coming.

Suddenly, though, he had another thought. He had invited her to his _ekele_. For dinner. _Tonight_. He wasn't sure how long he had been sitting, doing nothing, but he knew very well that he had wasted a lot of time writing the perfect note, and then more time worrying about the messenger to carry the perfect note. If she _did _come, she was going to find him as he was, dirty from the day's scouting, not to mention still covered in dirt from when he was lying on the ground, plus he had some small random things scattered around his _ekele _that he had dumped in his hurry when he got home to find a piece of paper to write the note on.

And he hadn't arranged for them to have any food yet!

Amberfeather dashed quickly through the room, picking up everything and shoving them in strange places. He knew the _hertasi _who normally did the tidying up was going to be confused about the placement of the items, but he didn't have time to put them away properly.

Next, he ran outside and down the path to the nearest bathing pool, and got himself clean in record time. He then dashed back to his _ekele, _hoping that his _hertasi, _Irysen, had appeared. He was almost always there around this time, but it would be typical with the way Amberfeather's luck was going recently for him to be missing.

Irysen _was _there, however, and Amberfeather calmed down a little, since he was clean and his _ekele _was clean, and with the _hertasi _there, food would not take long to arrive.

"Irysen, could you do me a favor?" Amberfeather asked. "I need dinner for me and a guest tonight. I think I would like it served by my favorite pool. Do you think that would be possible?"

Irysen eyed him, suspiciously. "Who will be joining you, Amberfeather?" the _hertasi _asked.

_Drat these nosy creatures! _Amberfeather thought. _They are not happy unless they know _everything _there is to know about everything! _

"Just a friend," he answered casually, hoping the _hertasi _would just take his word for it.

"Hmm," was all Irysen said, as he left to prepare the meal.

Amberfeather cast one more glance around his _ekele, _then realized he was still in his bathing robe, so he quickly dressed. As he was pulling on the last part of his clothes, he heard Winddancer's voice below, calling to him. He dashed down the stairs and then down the ladder that led to the ground. He missed the last rung and landed with a slightly louder than normal thud, but at least stayed on his feet.

"Hey, Winddancer! You came! I'm glad you were able to join me," Amberfeather said.

"I am too. I was just about to have dinner, but Hyyeh brought your note just in time. I must say, I have never used my bondbird as a messenger before. I don't think he'd do it. Reyyath is a very stubborn bird." Winddancer smiled at him, then fell silent.

They both just stood there, not quite sure what to say next. Suddenly, Amberfeather remembered that he had manners and invited her into his _ekele _to wait until dinner was ready.

"Come in, and we can wait until Irysen tells me that our dinner is ready for us," Amberfeather said. "I asked him to set it up by my favorite pool," he continued, "I hope that works for you."

"Oh, sure," she said. "Sounds great." She preceded him up the ladder, then they both settled down in the main room to visit while they waited for Irysen.

He finally came a few minutes later, minutes that had felt like hours to both Amberfeather and Winddancer, both of whom were not quite sure what to talk about.

"Come, if you please," Irysen said, after a pointed glance at Amberfeather after seeing who his dinner companion was to be. "I will lead you to dinner."

_I hope this wasn't a bad idea, _Amberfeather thought, _This has been really awkward. I like her so much, but I am not a very smooth talker! _He would have much more relaxed to know that Winddancer was having similar thoughts. He would have immediately panicked, however, if he had been able to hear Irysen's thoughts about their budding relationship and exactly what he was planning to do to help them along.

Irysen liked nothing more than a brand-new human relationship to help. And he didn't like how awkward the humans were behaving. He had a few tricks he was planning to use to assist them into bliss. He was very glad that he had decided to make the meal consist of mostly romantic foods, just in case it _was _a girl, as he had suspected, that Amberfeather was entertaining that evening.

_He was all too casual about the meal_, he thought to himself, satisfied. _But I saw through it, and now I'm going to help him._

Amberfeather was totally unaware of these thoughts, and there was nothing he could do about the plans anyway, but he should have been very, very worried.

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Thank you for reading! Remember to review to give me feedback on how it is going, as well as any comments you have on specific parts to my story... Poor Amberfeather! I think _eventually_ he will manage to get with Winddancer, but he just can't catch a break. Remember! I am NOT Mercedes Lackey! Thank you. 


	4. A Romantic Dinner?

Amberfeather motioned for Winddancer to go in front of him down the ladder leading out of his _ekele. _He was completely confused now. After their near-romantic kiss in the forest, and after the connection he had felt with her during the story telling session and while he talked to her, he had looked forward to this moment; of having her here with him. But this was not what he had wanted! He had wanted everything to be like before, before their kiss had been interrupted. He had even hoped he would be able to find his way clear to continue where he had left off.

But this? This awkward silence? He wished he had not invited her.

Winddancer was thinking the same thing. She really did like Amberfeather, and thought he was very different from the usual boys who tried to exchange feathers with her. However, these silences and stilted conversations were terrible. She didn't have this type of trouble with boys! She was popular and outgoing. _What was going on?_ she thought to herself. She sighed quietly as she followed Irysen.

As they arrived at the pool where their dinner had been arranged, Irysen paused to allow them both to precede him into the area. Quickly, he turned the marker to indicate that this pool was occupied and privacy was wanted. He didn't think that they would be too happy to be disturbed by anyone wanting to join a party already in progress. Plus, he knew how slow Amberfeather could be, and he wasn't going to allow any more interruptions if he could help it.

Amberfeather and Winddancer both settled on the pillows that had been carefully arranged around the makeshift table. Both spent time studiously studying the candles that had been arranged, the lovely food, the pool, the nearby messenger birds, even the ground, just so they could avoid eye contact.

_I think I'm going to pretend to choke on something, then go back to my _ekele thought Winddancer. _These silences are terrible._

Irysen wasn't happy with either one of them. He began to serve the meal, noting how the both were watching him, not each other. With just a moment's hesitation, he took the chilled soup he was getting ready to serve and dumped a large portion directly onto Amberfeather's head. He felt a little sorry for him, but felt he rather deserved this, since he was completely failing to woo the girl.

Amberfeather rose with a cry as the ice-cold soup cascaded over his head. He looked around frantically, trying to figure out what had just happened. When he realized that it was just that the _hertasi_, who were the best meal-servers around, had dumped some of the meal on him, he had a suspicion that it wasn't on accident. He glared at Irysen.

"Oh, Amberfeather, I am so sorry!" cried Irysen, sounding completely contrite.

Winddancer started to laugh. Amberfeather then transferred his glare to her. She attempted to stop laughing, but wasn't successful.

"Amberfeather… I am really hungry. Could you please stop messing around, and serve me? If I had known this was how you treat your guests, I would never have come!" Winddancer teased him.

Amberfeather continued to glare. After a bit, though, he sighed, and gave a little chuckle.

"Winddancer, why is it crazy things always happen to me when you're around? I mean, the other day, it was simply the worst day I'd had. It was embarrassing. Then, that whole thing with falling down in front of you, and you pinning me, and _then _the _dyheli _mocking me… I feel like such a fool. I totally understand that you want to leave, and I won't hold it against you if you do leave," he said, all in a rush. He felt really pitiful, but the thought of her wishing she could leave was even worse.

"Amberfeather! I am having fun! Well, I know you are fun, so I am sure I _will _have fun. It's just a little awkward."

Irysen felt a little less annoyed with the pair of them… they seemed to be moving in the right direction.

_Now for a little romantic food, and for me to make myself scarce _he decided.

He quickly served the rest of the food and melted away into the shadows.

After a few more minutes of awkward pauses and equally awkward conversations, they fell into a more natural conversation, talking about various aspects of their lives, favorite things, and childhoods. Since they were form similar families, they shared a lot of things, but it was still fun to discover yet another thing they had in common.

"So, Winddancer, what were you planning on doing later tonight?" As soon as he said it, Amberfeather blushed. He realized, of course too late, how that sounded. "I mean…"

Winddancer laughed at him, and answered, "I actually had no plans. Would you like to go walking with me? The weather is really nice outside tonight, and the moon is quite full."

Amberfeather jumped to his feet to assist her to her own feet. So far, he was really enjoying their romantic dinner and their conversation… he hoped that walking would make things even easier. They wouldn't have to worry about putting food in their mouths and then attempting to talk through the food.

Winddancer led him down the path that lead outside the Vale. Within minutes, they had exited and were walking down the quiet, moonlit path. It was pretty bright out tonight. Plenty of moon for walking… or enjoying the pleasure of someone else's company.

"Winddancer, you were right. The night is gorgeous. I am glad you suggested it."

They walked for a little way in companionable silence. Suddenly, Amberfeather felt a warm hand slip into his. His heart skipped a beat, then went on to pound at his chest.

_This is perfect! _he exulted to himself. Everything is going perfectly. Then he had a sudden thought… _Too perfectly… at least for this relationship. Or is our bad luck finally over? _

Winddancer was having similar thoughts, and was looking around suspiciously. She, too, realized that something was bound to happen to separate them, and was on the lookout for it. She didn't want anything else to prevent Amberfeather from kissing her. He was a very slow mover, and she didn't think she could take the lead up to a kiss again. She thought about taking matters into her own hands, but she liked her kisses to come to her, not the other way around. She decided to help him a little bit.

"Remember earlier today, Amberfeather?" she asked, breaking the silence.

"Which part," he asked, glancing at her.

"The one where you were talking about strategy, where I followed up your babbling with pinning you?"

"Yes, unfortunately," he answered, with a wince.

"Well, do you also remembered what happened right _after _I pinned you?" she questioned him.

"Yes, I do, also unfortunately. I got my rear kicked by a _dyheli," _Amberfeather told her, indignantly. "Why are you bringing that up?"

"Because. I want it to be fresh in your memory. So you'll remember what you _tried _to do earlier today." With those words that startled Amberfeather, she launched herself at him, and knocked him flat. Again, he was surprised, and easily went down.

Winddancer arranged herself comfortably on his chest, and looked down at him, smugly.

"I just wanted to go back to what we were doing, before we were so rudely interrupted," she informed him, with an encouraging smile. "Shall we?"

Amberfeather could hardly believe his ears. He quickly reached up and arranged her the same way he had the first time. He was so excited that she was thinking along the same lines as he was, he almost didn't know what to do.

He reached again for her face, locking his hands behind her neck to bring her face down to his. As he was getting ready to finally kiss her, he thought, _I wonder if anything is going to stop me this time…_

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Thank you for reading! If you have been following the attempted romance between Amberfeather and Winddancer, I am _so sorry _for the long delay. As I am teacher, school started and threw me for a loop! Needless to say, I have been so busy I haven't thought about much else... plus I have been getting my writing fix through my blog. 

So... please review if you've enjoyed it, or if you want to make suggestions... and also check out my blog (get the link from my profile). Thanks!


	5. A Moonlight Stroll

Amberfeather felt his lips just barely brush against Winddancer's, and then they were once again separated rudely. Winddancer had abruptly jumped off of him, yelling the entire time. Amberfeather ducked as he saw something dive through the air, heading toward him. He realized it was Hyyeh, and raised his hand to fend him off. He still didn't understand what has just happened, but he opened his mind to ask Hyyeh what _exactly _his bondbird thought he was doing.

_:Sorry, sorry!: _

_:That does _not _explain what you were doing, bird! Explain. _Now. _:_

_:He said it would be fun:_

_It would be fun? _Amberfeather thought about his words for a minute. They didn't make sense to him immediately, but then he got it. _Oh! Winddancer's bird thought it would be funny to interrupt us, and my idiotic bird went along with it. It _might _have been funny if we hadn't already had so many interruptions!_

Amberfeather finally worked out that Reyyath had taking a hunting stoop toward Winddancer's back, just barely brushing her back, while also apparently giving her an earful at the same time.

After everyone settled down, and the birds were both perched out of sight, looking properly shamed, Amberfeather offered his hand to Winddancer. She accepted, and they started back toward the Vale.

"I don't know _what _Reyyath really thought he was doing, Amberfeather. I'm so, so sorry. I am not happy him." Winddancer sounded very angry.

"It's okay, Winddancer. We still had a lovely dinner, and it's a very pretty night for this walk, even if it was a bit stranger than we expected!"

They chatted a bit as they walked, but they soon were back inside the Vale and at the foot of the ladder leading to Winddancer's _ekele. _

"Thanks for a lovely time, Amberfeather," she said, squeezing his hand.

"Thanks for being willing to come at the last moment," he said, smiling at her. He thought about trying to arrange another meeting with her, but he wasn't sure how to phrase it. He didn't wanted to sound even more incompetent.

While he was thinking, they were both just standing there, saying nothing. She clearly felt awkward, though he didn't since he was thinking much to hard about what to say. She pulled her hand out of his grasp and reached for the ladder.

"Goodnight, Amberfeather."

"Wait!" Amberfeather knew he had to figure out something to say, and he had to do it now. "Um… would you want to have dinner again? Together, I mean? Of course you'll have dinner again. I mean, if you didn't, you would soon start to waste away to practically nothing…" his voice trailed off.

_Smooth, Amberfeather. Real smooth._

She hesitated, then said, "I'm not sure what my plans are currently, but send me a note, or stop by and see me."

A clear dismissal.

Apparently_ this romance is doomed to failure, _thought Amberfeather. _The strangest things keep coming between us. She must be tired of trying. The awkwardness of it all is just _awful. _I don't guess I really blame her._

"I'll do that, then. Goodnight." He waved and watched as she quickly disappeared into her _ekele. _

He sighed and headed back to his own _ekele_. He wasn't looking forward to the morning, since he had the early scouting shift. He knew that he would see several of his friends who would have heard that he was trying to become better friends with Winddancer, and he knew they would want details.

He didn't feel like sharing details.

As he climbed the ladder, Irysen popped his head out one of the windows of the _ekele_.

"Amberfeather! Why are you back so soon? And alone?" Irysen asked, disapproval clear in his voice.

"I don't want to talk about it." Amberfeather truly wasn't in the mood to discuss his love life. Especially since it was going nowhere still.

"Amberfeather, I am very disappointed in you. You are not a romantic soul, are you?" Irysen shook his head in utter disgust. "When I left you, everything was perfect!"

He thought for a moment, then shook his head again, and added, "What could have happened to destroy the lovely mood? You must have done something."

"That's not fair! The stupid bondbirds thought it would be _hilarious _to…" Amberfeather's voice trailed off. He didn't really want to explain, as he had told Irysen.

He had meant it, actually.

He knew the other scouts would want to know about it, first thing in the morning, and he wasn't looking forward to that. He had just had a horrible night, and he didn't want to rehash it just now.

"I'm going to bed, Irysen. I'll talk to you tomorrow." Amberfeather quickly went inside the _ekele _and shut himself in his bedroom.

Irysen knew that Amberfeather would indeed need some more help. It seems like he would need to have a chat with the bondbirds. A chat that might even include a threat.

He would keep it very simple. Simple enough that the birds would have no problem understanding him.

Because he needed to be sure they did indeed understand that he wanted no interference in Amberfeather and Winddancer's romance.

The fact was… he wasn't sure they would ever manage to have a relationship if the bird's interfered again.

And that couldn't be allowed to happen.

* * *

I am SO sorry this took so long to post an update for! I am not really sure why, but apparently I just wasn't in the mood to write. I am going to hopefully get the next (and final) chapter finished very soon and posted. Thanks to everyone who waited (patiently and not!) for this update!

Hope you enjoy it, and let me know what you think!


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